Concerns raised over sky lantern festival on Derbyshire moorland

Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service (DFRS) is trying to dissuade the organiser of a sky lantern festival from holding the event following concerns regarding recent fires on moorland.

The Lights Fest is set to take place on July 28 at Buxton Raceway, close to the moors in Derbyshire.

The festival sees visitors light biodegradable sky lanterns, which are released in to the night sky.

Currently, DFRS and the event’s organising team are locked in talks. Safety advisory group meetings are taking place and according to DFRS, every effort is being made to dissuade the organisers from letting the event go ahead because of wildfires on Saddleworth Moor and Winter Hill.

High Peak MP, Ruth George, has written to the organising team and High Peak Borough Council expressing her serious concerns about the planned mass release of sky lanterns on the edge of Buxton at the end of July.

In her letter, George said: “This is a huge event planned and advertised regionally and nationally. I am particularly concerned that this is happening when we have had a period of effective drought when fire risks are especially high, and in the heart of the Peak District, which is environmentally sensitive, adjacent to large areas of the National Park and rich in wildlife.

“I have no problem with visitors coming to Buxton but with such a high fire risk due to our long dry spell of weather, and so many concerns about sky lanterns, I want to make sure that there is no fire risk on our moorland, or to Buxton itself. That is why I have been asking questions and I look forward to the answers.”

According to the organiser, the sky lanterns used at The Lights Fest are customised, made from non-flammable and biodegradable materials, which aid the protection of participants and the environment.